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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22900357">Frozen Chocolates</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Keinine/pseuds/Keinine'>Keinine</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Promare (2019)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>M/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-02-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-02-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 12:33:40</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,552</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22900357</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Keinine/pseuds/Keinine</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>“Are your eyes closed, Lio?” Galo asks.</p>
<p>“Yes.” Lio responds, like a liar.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Lio Fotia/Galo Thymos</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>94</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Frozen Chocolates</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This is for a Valentine's Swap a discord server I'm in hosted, though mine is a bit late;;</p>
<p>For Naomi!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The crunch of snow underfoot is the only thing that permeates the silence surrounding them, punctuated by the occasional yawn and huff of breath. Lio wasn’t one that took kindly to being dragged out of bed—a luxury he found himself able to afford within recent time, sleeping in, and it was near impossible to wake him if you weren’t Galo, Meis, or Gueira—especially when he is dragged out of bed amid a cold winter day, leaving him cold, tired, and somewhat (only mildly) irritated. All before the sun even rose.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Galo was as energetic as always, even when he himself was yawning through the trek. They had to ditch Galo’s bike a bit back, the path too densely pressed on by trees to fit the bike, even if Galo drove slowly. Plus, he insisted this would be more fun, anyway. Sure. Cool. Lio could maybe appreciate it when he was more awake and when his body warmed. Even when he had his own hoodie worn beneath Galo’s much warmer jacket, he still felt the chill nipping at his cheeks.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So,” Lio breaks the silence after another yawn, palm coming up to rub at his eyes. Galo turns to look at him, their shoulders bumping. “Are you finally willing to tell me where we’re going, or are you keeping it a surprise right up until the last moment?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Even if Lio had been dating Galo for almost a year now, he still had no hope in figuring out how the other’s mind work. Which really wasn’t great when it came to surprises, because Galo both gave things away but never gave things away at the same time, and Lio has yet to figure out the pattern enough to just put the pieces together himself. Galo was one of a kind, that much is for certain, and Lio couldn’t be more enamored.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Except, maybe not right now when he’s tired and freezing.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Of course, his answer is met only with a grin, that same old ‘Galo is extremely sure of himself even when his smiles are lopsided’ grin that Lio always gets from him. Bright as the rising sun, but far more memorable than just another passing day.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Of course it’s a secret! It wouldn’t be a surprise if it weren’t, you know!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Honestly, Lio should’ve expected as much in terms of response, though he’s a little disappointed. Impatience is not an outward trait he shows—often—but he would be lying if he said he wasn’t curious about where they were going. Or, rather, he knew the general area of where they were. The forest is all too familiar, if a little too dense compared to how it used to be, the once familiar pathway now overgrown due to not being used. Galo’s bike once could easily fit the path, he’d ridden it out here plenty of times, though now things are too overgrown to simply ride through. That, and Lio is sure Galo would insist on walking anyway. To be more fun.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Despite the lingering irritation that stems solely from being woken earlier than he would have liked, there is a small smile that creeps onto his face, though he doesn’t give Galo the pleasure of seeing and instead goes back to just staring forward, walking, and being grumpy.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They walk in silence for about ten minutes longer, Lio having woken up more while his body warmed, and that’s when Galo really wakes him up by startling him. Without warning, the taller rounds on him, and his vision is suddenly blocked by a rough, warm hand over his face. Lio will vehemently deny the slight squeak of a startled noise that came from him, not that he thinks Galo heard anyway. Not while he’s too laser-focused on slapping Lio’s sight away, at least.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Galo, what are you doing?” Lio asks, unable to help the slight crack in voice as he fights back a laugh. Though he can’t tell if it’s to deflect the fact he was startled, or if he was actually, honestly amused.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Then again, that’s not completely impossible. Galo, as erratic and spontaneous as he can be, really did almost amuse Lio in ways he never thought possible from anyone that wasn’t Meis or Gueira.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I already told you, it’s a surprise! Don’t worry, I won’t let you fall, so just keep walking!” Galo says, as though Lio can simply step forward and accept the fact he can’t see.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Yet, he does. Hesitantly, he steps forward once. Then again. And again. Galo makes a pleased noise, rather happy that Lio is playing along with this. Lio feels Galo’s other hand slide against his, holding him tight to guide him. Every so often the hand will slip from its place, Galo likely walking backwards and the hand on his face shifting just enough to the point where, if Lio opened his eyes, he would be able to see. But he doesn’t peek, because Galo is excited, and if Galo is excited then Lio is excited, and as eager as he is to see where he’s being dragged off to, he can be patient for a few more steps.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sure enough, Galo stops leading Lio, and faintly, beneath the sound of the wind, Lio thinks he hears water.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Are your eyes closed, Lio?” Galo asks.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes.” Lio responds, like a liar.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re lying! I felt them open just now!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Lio laughs at that. “Okay, okay, now they’re closed.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Galo waits a moment, and Lio finally feels his hand pull back. His eyes, as promised, are closed, and Lio hears Galo shuffling around for a while. And then a while longer. Lio shifts from one foot to the other, arms crossing over his chest. Galo seems to sense the impatience, scrambling, “hold on—things got shoved around a little, just give me a sec!” His voice is followed by grunting, some clanking, some shouting. The usual noises of a Galo Thymos that’s found himself flustered by a sudden wreck in his oh so carefully scripted plan. Lio is almost tempted to peek.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Though, he’s not left waiting much longer before Galo presses up behind him, hands placed over Lio’s eyes once again. “Okay, on the count of three!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What happens on the count of three, Galo?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You open your eyes, of course!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Of course, Lio knew, he wasn’t dumb, but prolonging this seemed to start getting to Galo as well, and he can almost hear the pout in his voice when he has to explain further.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“One…. two… three!” At the exclamation of three, Galo’s hands pull back, and Lio’s eyes flutter open.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Of course, Lio had seen this scenery once before, months ago. Lio had known the ice lake, surrounded by forest, close to a mountain cave. But he long since melted the ice, leaving nothing but a crater in the ground. From what he’d last seen, at least, but the scenery before him is a different story.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A lake, though still lacking in much greenery surrounding it, is no longer frozen. Water laps at the water’s edge, tossed around from the water, and to the far end Lio notices a little creek, small and naturally formed. Further out from the water and closer to himself and Galo, there was a blanket, and on top of that blanket had to be some of the absolute cheesiest Valentine’s gifts Lio had the pleasure of seeing: A rather large, brown teddy bear, holding a heart-shaped box, likely filled with chocolates, and a bouquet of roses that were likely going to freeze out in these conditions if left out much longer. There was also a basket, the most cliche of woven baskets one would find at a picnic, possibly in a cartoon, and almost felt himself swoon.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Now Lio really does let Galo see the smile that overtakes his features, turning to the other man, who looks far too pleased with himself, with a quirked brow. “A picnic next to a lakeside, while the sun is still rising and it’s freezing?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Instead of taking the questioning as criticism (they both knew it wasn’t), Galo simply puffs out his chest. “Yeah! I thought this would be more fun than making some reservation somewhere! Though the timing of the sunrise was a bit off. We didn’t walk fast enough.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Lio, however, felt they walked plenty fast.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He simply laughs, pulling Galo down for a kiss, sweet and chaste, before pulling away and moving to settle himself on the blanket. It took Galo too long for his brain to kick back in, so Lio had to call him over. “Well? Aren’t you going to join me, or am I going to have to set everything up myself, even though this is my surprise?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Of course, that has Galo scrambling next to Lio, playfully batting his hands away as he reached for the basket. “No, no, I’m setting everything up! You just sit there and warm up!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sit here and be warm. Okay.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And Lio?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hm?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Galo leans in towards Lio, giving him another kiss. Longer, than the tease of a kiss he’d given Galo earlier. Short enough, however, to leave Lio wanting to kiss him again when he pulls back, almost chasing it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Happy Valentine’s Day. I love you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Lio smiles. “I love you too, Galo.”</span>
</p>
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